Revitalization of Local Languages through Community-Based Education in the Solomon Islands

Abstract

This community service project addressed the critical endangerment of indigenous languages in the Solomon Islands through implementation of community-based vernacular education programs across three linguistic communities: Marovo, Vangunu, and Arosi. The 24-month intervention, conducted from January 2022 to December 2023, engaged 847 community members including 156 children aged 5-12, 43 teachers, 28 elders, and 620 community stakeholders across 12 villages in Western and Makira-Ulawa Provinces. The program developed culturally appropriate pedagogical materials, established mother-tongue education classes, trained community language teachers, created intergenerational language transmission activities, and documented endangered linguistic knowledge. Baseline assessments revealed alarming language shift patterns: only 23% of children demonstrated fluency in their ancestral languages, with English and Solomon Islands Pijin dominating daily communication. Post-intervention evaluation documented substantial improvements: child language proficiency increased to 61%, daily vernacular language use in homes rose from 34% to 72%, and community members produced 2,847 pages of documented linguistic and cultural knowledge. The project successfully integrated traditional oral knowledge systems with contemporary educational methodologies, engaged youth as active language learners and teachers, and established sustainable community language committees. This model demonstrates effective strategies for indigenous language revitalization in Pacific Island contexts facing accelerating linguistic and cultural erosion.